Friday, April 03, 2009

Royal Saudi sensation: King Abdullah names Sudairi Prince Nayef second in line

28 March: Riyadh is in uproar over the Saudi King Abdullah's snap decision to promote the interior minister Prince Nayef, 76, his half-brother from the rival Sudairi clan, to second deputy prime minister. This places him in direct line to the throne as the incumbent Crown Prince defense minister Prince Sultan lies on his deathbed. The official appointment took immediate effect.

DEBKA-Net-Weekly weekly has been reporting for months that Sultan was dying of small intestine cancer. While establishing himself as a modernizing reformer in the hidebound oil kingdom, Abdullah held back four years from slotting the conservative Sudairi Prince after Sultan in the line of succession. He had hoped to break the pattern whereby the throne was handed around among the many sons of the dynasty's founder Ibn Saud and start introducing grandsons to the order of succession. His preferred candidate was foreign minister Saud al Faisal. This plan fell through when the prince developed Parkinson's disease.

Nayef is expected to be the most conservative and radical of any Saudi monarch to date. One of the few Saudi princes never to have visited Washington, the Obama administration might find his friendships with Islamic radical institutions useful to open Taliban doors for ending the Afghanistan conflict. For Israel, Nayef is bad news. He is likely to give more backing than the Abdullah did tor Hamas and other extremist Palestinian elements.

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Israeli teenager dies of axe wounds inflicted by Palestinian terrorist 02 March: One or more Palestinian terrorists rampaged around Bat Ayin, in the West Bank Gush Etzion bloc Thursday, April 2, attacking two Israeli boys with an axe. Shlomo Nativ, 16, died of his wounds, the second, aged 7, suffered a serious skull injury. Residents opened fire on the terrorists who managed to get away. Heavy security reinforcements were rushed to the area. They set up roadblocks and surrounded neighboring Arab villages to search for the killer or killers. All the communities in the area were put on terror alert. The attack occurred on the second day of school holiday for the Passover festival.

2009 has already proven to be a pivotal year in the creation/evolution debate. It’s the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his book The Origin of Species. Evolutionists have been busy with special events, including feature films, TV documentaries, world-travelling exhibitions, tall-ship re-enactments of the HMS Beagle voyage, and much, much more. Even the free distribution of 200,000 ‘commissioned’ comic strip books featuring Darwin as a super-hero!

A unique opportunity

In response, Creation Ministries International, through our subsidiary Fathom Media and using a team of world-class professionals, has produced a major international documentary film costing over $1m. Structured around Darwin’s famous HMS Beagle voyage, it features stunning wildlife photography, period re-enactments and interviews with leading authorities from around the world. We made this 52min. documentary to the highest production standards utilizing media professionals so that it could be broadcast on general TV.

It is intended to be a thoughtful exploration, a crossover product to seek to influence the “mainstream” to ”think again” about Darwin. It is also a powerful tool that can “break down the barriers” of evolutionary prejudice, overcoming preconceived ideas about biblical creationists by its approach of being gentle and fair without compromising truth.

Comments from a film critic

Renowned Christian and film critic Dr. Ted Baehr, whose Movieguide.org website is consulted by millions, saw the almost-ready documentary in late February. Here are some samples from his enthusiastic written reaction to us:

“Fascinating and insightful … ”

“ … this extremely well-crafted exploration of who Charles Darwin was and what he believed is one of the best-produced documentaries ever made.”

“Not a hatchet job or propaganda piece, it presents Darwin’s story through the eyes of professors and others who admire the man. … presents his humanist, anti-Christian views with dignity and respect, but in the process reveals the flaws, confusion and falsehoods of his theories.”

“This is a beautifully produced program … because of its fairness and clarity … if people watch it with an open mind, it may turn their hearts and minds away from the confusion that is Darwinism toward asking the right questions that can lead them to the truth.”

Comments from Christian teachers

“This is great—just what we need to really get the conversation on all these topics going in the right direction in the classroom.”

“I can see us opening up all these issues in detail with the kids … let’s work on a study guide.”

“I can see its power … the quality, the way it can’t be written off as ignorant Bible-thumpers … ”